The Oscar-nominated actress is eyeing a completely different type of role in the big screen adaptation of a short story by Ted Chiang, according to Deadline.

It takes place after alien spaceships have landed on Earth and an expert linguist is recruited to work out whether they are a threat or come in peace - but as she works with the aliens, she starts to have vivid flashbacks that reveal the real reason behind their visit.

The closest American Hustle star Amy has come to sci-fi before was as Lois Lane in the recent Superman remake, Man Of Steel.

She would be working with Prisoners director Denis Villeneuve, who has not been known for work in the genre before either.

Amy recently finished filming on the Tim Burton-directed Big Eyes, where she stars as painter Margaret Keane and Christoph Waltz plays her husband, who claimed credit for the artworks.